Chronophobia
by contaminatedxx
Summary: Chronophobia is the fear of time- Time is something that Arthur Kirkland doesn't have. His partner Alfred Jones has been ill and in the hospital for months, and the bills are stacking up; but when he meets a Frenchman and his cat named Belle on the streets, things start to change for the better. Find out what happens in "Chronphobia," a Hetalia fanfiction.
1. Chapter 1

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Well, this is my first fanfiction that is going out on the internet. I'm pretty nervous, because I usually don't like my work and end up deleting everything I do. And I don't know if this idea has already been used before... This story literally came to me in a dream I had. So, here I go!

(_These chracters belong to Hidekaz Himaruya, and I own none of them.)_

**T**he crisp December air bit at Arthur's nose. Every breath he took was icy cold, and he didn't like it. This was one of the many reasons he hated Winter. Though, he had to grin in bear it, because this was his boyfriend's favorite season. Yes, his boyfriend. He'd do anything in the world for Alfred. Alfred, the silly, blond-haired male that he loved with all his heart despite his ability to be quite annoying at times.

Arthur tugged on the collar of his jacket to where it came over his ears, which were beginning to feel like icicles now. He was sure that they were going to fall off at any given moment.

He let out a huffy breath, and watched as the air in front of his face turned into puffs of white. _"Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way..."_ the song was on repeat in his head, and was about to drive him mad. Alfred had sung it earlier, so that's probably why it had stayed there.

_My poor, poor Alfred. _He thought over the loud Christmas carols that were bouncing around in his skull.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see children in their coats and mittens running on the icy sidewalk. He would've told them not to run, for it was too slippery, but he didn't think he could find the energy to speak at the moment. The only thing his mind would let him think about was Alfred. _Alfred, Alfred, Alfred. _

Arthur heard a husky voice come from his left side. "Spare change?" It said. He glanced over and saw an overweight man with a wispy brown beard holding out an empty tomato soup can to him. It only had a few copper coins in it. "I'm sorry," his voice sounded surprisingly rough and weak. "I don't have any on me." He saw the look of disappointment wash over the other male's face, and it made his heart clench up inside his chest. That was thing he hated about Winter; beggars who expect everyone to be in high-spirits and generous enough to give a few pennies. But no, not Arthur. Even though it made him feel bad, he needed all the money he could scrape up at the moment. "Terribly sorry, sir," he repeated, walking away as quickly as he could if the man decided to jump him and see if he _really _didn't have any money with him.

Which, he did.

As he made his way down the street, he took notice of the lights and decorations that had been put out. There were wreaths and tinsel strewn in the windows of candy shops and bakeries, making them seem very cozy and warm inside. It just made him feel even colder. "Hey!" Another time, from behind. _What now? _"Have you seen this dog?" The boy who looked to be in about his teens held up a yellowing piece of paper with a poorly drawn picture of a Basset Hound. "No, I'm sorry..." Again, another look of disappointment that gnawed at his heart. "But," he added. "I'll tell you if I see one." Arthur threw in a friendly smile for good measure. The boy's face automatically lightened, and he said, "Her name is Lucy-Lou."

They exchanged small chat for a few moments before the teen ran off and stopped a young woman nearby, asking her the same question. As soon as he left, his smile dropped. Smiling was exhausting these days, and it didn't happen often. They were always forced, and talking was even harder. He honestly didn't know how long he could take it anymore. But, he tried, for Alfred.

_Alfred, Alfred, Alfred..._

Arthur saw a cars coming down the road, and thought about stepping out in front of them. But no, Alfred would be devastated. There was absolutely positively no chance he could ever do such a thing to his beloved; it would surely make him more ill than he already was.

He almost slipped on a patch of ice, but used a tree to balance himself. "Bloody snow," he growled, puffing his chest out. "I _hate _Winter." He happened to glance down at his watch, and nearly gasped when he saw that it was past nine 'o clock. _Damn it! Visting hours will be over soon. _Arthur only slipped once more as he dashed down the sidewalk. Even if he did get there on time, he'd only have a few minutes to talk to Alfred. Well, it was better than nothing at all.

He managed to bump into several people on the way; all of them begging for money, and all of them completely wasting his time. _9:42 _his watch read. He swore under his breath, and continued running. _Maybe they'll let me in if I cry, _He thought. But as he entered the glass hospital doors, he realized that he was in no condition to be sucking up to nurses. The run had left him breathless, and it seemed like every strand of his blond hair was frozen in place by the cold. Tears were streaming out of his emerald-green eyes; that had also been an effect of the cold weather outside. His eyes and throat burned, but he still had to try to convince someone to let him see Alfred.

_9:54._

"Ma'am!" Arthur attempted to flatten his hair and moisten his throat again. His whole body shivered. "Y-You have to let me see Alfred," he pleaded in a trembling voice. His lips seemed like they had been frozen, and it took a great effort to get them to move. The nurse gave him a very worried look and extended an arm to Arthur to steady him. "Please, I really need to talk to him. I promised Alfred that I'd come to see him today."

"Alright, what room is Alfred in?" She asked, using a tone of voice that you would use to tell a wounded child he was going to be okay. Her chestnut brown hair fell over her shoulders in wavy sheets, and her eyes were as blue as the sky. It would not have been an understatement to say that she was stunningly beautiful. Even though Arthur was, well, in relations with a man, the thought of falling in love with this woman would not have been impossible. In fact, that very thought was going through his mind right then; and for just a moment, he'd forgotten about Alfred.

_Pull yourself together, lad! _He scolded himself. Arthur cleared his throat, and desperately searched his brain for that three-digit number that was swimming around in his skull somewhere. _What was it? I can't remember three bloody numbers?_

"Are you alright?" the nurse asked in her sweet, sing-song voice. He gave a polite nod in reply, spitting out the numbers, "234." Yes, that was his room number. How could he have not remembered that? Those numbers were right next to each other. _Stupid. _The girl smiled, leading Arthur to a nearby elevator. "Go up to the second floor," she said. "Then walk down the hall to your right until you reach his room."

"Thank you," he let out a long sigh.

When Arthur boarded the elevator, he unconsciously punched in a button on the panel. His knees were shaking, and he was scared that they might give out at any moment. His ears caught the faint sound of music; Christmas music. _"Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way..."_ That song again. _"Oh, what fun it is to ride in a-" _The music was cut off by a blood-curdling scream. It only took him a few seconds to realize that he was the one screaming. Laying doubled up on the ground with his hands pressed over his ears, Arthur could have easily been mistaken for a psych patient. Luckily, he had enough time to straighten himself out before the elevator doors slid open. He could barely move his feet to exit the box; it felt like someone had filled his shoes with lead. _You can do it, Arthur _he told himself. _Do it for Alfred. Alfred. You need to see Alfred. _Just the thought of his male companion made his heart ache to see him. _Alfred. _He took a reluctant step. _Alfred! _The next thing he knew, he was jogging down the hallway. Oh, how he desperately wanted to see the face of his beloved angel again. If he could only find the room number... _536, 537, 538... Wait! I'm on the wrong floor. _Arthur rolled his eyes. _What a bloody fool I am. _He turned to head back to the elevator, but was startled when the nurse from before was standing right in front of him. "Wrong floor, dear," she said sweetly. The idea that she had followed him didn't even occur to Arthur. "Yes, I've just realized that." The mere sound of her voice gave him a strange feeling, not unlike the one he got when Alfred was around; but there was a strange air to this girl that Alfred didn't have.

"I'll just be going now," he said with a polite smile, fastening his plaid scarf around his neck. Her blue eyes gave off a strange glint as she gave him a small nod, walking down the white halls with graceful strides.

Something was odd about her, and Arthur knew it; he just couldn't get past the fact that she was absolutely gorgeous.

Arthur entered the elevator again, this time paying attention to what button he pressed. He felt the metal box start to move upwards. He was really going to see Alfred this time; just the thought made his heartbeat accelerate. Taking a deep breath, he ran a hand through his wet hair. _Alfred. _He was almost frightened to see him, for the last time he had visited his beloved was absolutely agonizing. To see the one you love with various tubes and needles sticking out of them... There is no word in the English vocabulary to describe the amount of helplessness and anger it can make one feel. In fact, Arthur was sure that he had cried for at least a solid hour after that. It pained him to leave Alfred in that wretched hospital every night like that, and he could barely sleep at all anymore. This whole situation was draining them both physically and mentally.

As he walked down white halls for a second time, his mind was racing with terrible thoughts. What if he had suddenly died just minutes before Arthur had made it onto the floor? What if he'd died back when he was talking to that nurse? Oh, no. What if he dies when Arthur is in the room with him? He tried to shake the thoughts from his head. _Optimism, Arthur _he told himself.

He stopped in front of the door that read "234" on a small bronze colored plaque.

Arthur reached out, and slowly turned the doorknob...


	2. Chapter 2

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I'm so sorry for not updating this sooner! There's been a lot of stuff going on lately, so I haven't been able to write. I apologize for the short chapter. I should be posting more often on my wattpad account, though. My username is contaminatedxx. Thanks for sticking with me!

It was dark when he stepped into the room.  
The blinds were closed, and the only source of light was coming from the door he'd just opened.  
"Alfred?" The male asked tentatively, feeling the wall for the light switch.  
When he found the light, he turned it on.  
There was a gasping sound followed by the sudden flooding of light in the room. "Turn it off," a hoarse voice pleaded. Arthur immediately switched off the light and rushed to the side of his parter's bed. "I'm so sorry, love," he apologized, placing a light kiss on the other male's cheek. But, wait a moment. It felt like he had a fever. "Are you feeling any better today?" Arthur asked, placing a gentle hand on Alfred's forehead. He was burning up. "Fine," he managed to choke out between labored gasps for air. Seeing his partner in such a state was enough to bring him to tears. Luckily, the lights were off.

"You're going to be okay," Arthur cooed, stroking Alfred's face gently in an attempt to calm him down a bit. "Just take slow, deep breaths. You'll be okay."

He wondered if his voice was giving away that he was practically crying now.

"Hey, Artie? You don't have to cry for me..."  
Apparently, it was pretty noticeable.  
"I'm not crying, you bloody git." Arthur attempted to dry his wet eyes.  
"Yeah you are. You don't have to lie about it for my sake."

He could feel a trembling hand lift and wipe the tears off of his cheeks. "I love you, and I'm not gonna give up without a fight. Okay?"  
Though the lights were off, he could tell Alfred was struggling to give him an encouraging smile. "Okay. I love you too, Alfred. Is it okay if I stay the night here? Or do you want to be left alone?"  
There was a momentary pause.  
"I'd rather you go home," he said quietly. "I don't want you to be up all night with me. Besides, who'd take care of Eddie?"

Arthur chuckled. "Mm." Eddie was their fish they'd bought together about three months ago. Alfred wasn't as bad when they'd gotten him.

"Alright, then. Do you need anything before I leave?"  
He shook his head.  
"Okay. I love you." Arthur leaned over and kissed Alfred's forehead gently.  
"I'm going to come see you earlier tomorrow at... three 'o clock."  
"'Kay."

And with that, he exited the room, shutting the door behind him.

The light from the hallway was blinding compared to Alfred's room.  
Arthur sighed, sitting on a bench placed next to the door. _He seems to be a bit better than before_, he thought. _Maybe he'll turn out okay... All I can do is hope._  
He felt the tears coming on again; before he knew it, he was sobbing in the hallway.  
Several nurses and doctors passed by him without saying anything. Well, who could blame them? They probably had no time for trivial matters such as that.

After a about an hour or so of weeping, he'd finally gotten the strength to get to his feet. He was a bit embarrassed about breaking down like that, but he couldn't help himself.  
Arthur walked down the hallway and into the elevator. He wondered if that nurse would still be around so he could thank her.  
He pressed the button that said "1" and waited a moment before the doors started to close.

Just before they were completely shut, a shoved itself in between the sliver of open in the door.  
"Excuse me," said the person who had put their hand there. They pried the doors open. "Sorry about that."  
It was a man with wavy blond hair that fell down to his shoulders and broke out into gentle curls at the tips. His eyes were a soft blue, and his chin was studded with stubble.  
"It's alright," Arthur replied in a monotone voice.

There was silence in the small box until the man spoke up in his thick French accent.  
"You have a lover who is bedridden here, no?"  
_How could he know that?_ Arthur thought.  
"...Yes," he replied hesitantly after a few moments of consideration.  
"And you are wondering where I got this information from, no?"

This was weird.

"I guess so." His voice was a bit irritated this time.  
"Well, let me introduce you to my latest invention."  
The French man slid his backpack off his shoulders and shoved his hand into it after he'd unzipped it.  
"I call her... Voir à Travers." He pulled a small, rusty machine out of his bag. "You look into the peeping hole right there, and point it at a person. Then, it tells you all about them."

Arthur cocked a bushy eyebrow. "Oh? I'd like to try it myself."  
Before the man could even open his mouth to reply, a dinging noise signified that they had reached their destination.  
"Here is my card." He held out his hand, a white card pinched between his fingers. Arthur could see that his fingernails were groomed despite his clothes.

He hesitantly took the card from the other male. His eyes picked up on the name "Francis" so he figured that was his name.

Francis winked at him as he exited the elevator.

"I hope to be hearing from you soon," he said.


	3. Chapter 3

_AUTHOR'S NOTE:_

_Ew, crappy new chapter. Sorry It's so short; I don't even understand why this is getting any feedback. But, thank you all so much! This is a huge confidence booster. And, I apologize for not posting often- I have midterms and family stuff going on, as well as personal issues. Stay lovely, my dears._

**CHAPTER THREE**

**A**rthur was walking down the street yet again; but this time, it was even colder and darker outside than before.  
He couldn't stop looking at the card that man had given him. On further observation, he saw that there was no phone number, nor a company name on the card. It just said, "Meet me at Coq d'Argent ."

Strange.

_Am I really going to go see this man?_ He thought to himself.  
Arthur just brushed away the idea, and decided he'd think about it in the morning. All he wanted to do right now was make some tea, crawl into bed, and watch a nice television program. But, most of them would probably be Christmas oriented, which irritated him greatly. Maybe not, then.  
He blinked his tired eyes, rubbing them in an attempt to moisten them. He was absolutely exhausted, and wanted to sleep immediately. Would it be wrong to use a few coins and take the bus home?  
But no, he needed any coin he could possibly save for Alfred's medical bills.

His poor, poor Alfred.

Arthur decided to just sit on a nearby bench to rest his aching body if only just for a moment. He rubbed his eyes again, yawning a bit. Maybe if he just closed his eyes for a moment...  
"Monsieur!"  
A familiar voice. No, but it couldn't be. Arthur's eyelids flew open, only to find that the French man from the elevator was standing over him. He observed that the man now had a grey cat in his arms; the feline had a black leather collar with a golden colored bell attached to it.

"Pleased to see you again," the Frenchman purred. Arthur noticed that he also licked his lips before he started speaking. Strange. "Now, would you like a closer look at my invention?"  
"What, that contraption? Buzz off, you wanker. That's total rubbish."  
A look of hurt and shock flashed across his face, one Arthur had seen several times today, leaving him unphased. "Why, monsieur... But- but, I thought you..."  
"I said buzz off."  
Arthur then proceeded to jab his middle finger in the man's face; Francis, he remembered his name was. _What was with the sudden irritability?_ "If you wish... But you have my card if you change your mind, no?"  
He folded his arms across his chest, giving Francis a small nod.  
And, with that, he walked away.

After what seemed like only moments of resting his eyes after recovering from the previous incident, Arthur heard singing. Christmas carols, to be exact. _Great_, he thought in exasperation. _Surely they'll ask me for money, and-_ "Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer had a very shiny nose! And if you ever saw it, you could even say it glows..." His thoughts were interrupted by the loud outburst of the song _Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer_. The carolers held out an empty tin soup can, practically begging him for money. Though Arthur didn't want to be the 'Ebenezer Scrooge' of the story, he couldn't bear to part with his precious coins. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "I really am, but... My," he cut himself off, deciding to change his words up a bit. Not everyone was very welcoming to gays. "My... Girlfriend is ill in the hospital, and I need all the money I can scrape up. I'm sorry." The singing stopped as soon as he had started talking, but they all seemed to understand.

_Beggars. Why always me? I should be the one begging. _Arthur pinched the bridge of his nose in a gesture of exhaustion.  
When he opened his eyes again, the group disappeared. _Thank God_.  
His eyelids grew heavy, and he didn't think he could keep his eyes open anymore. So, he curled up on the bench, and closed his eyes; he started to drift into the dark arms of sleep.

When he woke, he was still on the bench. It was pitch black outside, except for the few street lamps that were practically the only source of light. "Bloody hell," Arthur murmured sleepily, yawning and rubbing his eyes. "What time is it?" He asked to no one in particular.

The cold air stung at his bare skin, giving him a somewhat numb feeling. He attempted to get up, but felt like his whole body was frozen over.  
Arthur slowly pried his frosty limbs from the bench, carefully getting to his feet. His back ached, and his head was pounding. "Damned weather," he growled under his breath.

As he started to walk along the sidewalk yet again, he noticed that the only source of light was coming from a nearby street lamp. It was dark. _Very_ dark. He could barely even see his own two feet. The cold air wasn't making the situation any better. He was shivering so hard that he was certain if anyone were to see him, they would think he was having a seizure.  
"Hello."  
A voice from his left side.  
Arthur gasped, whipping around and searching frantically for the source of the sound. "Who- who are you? Who is it?" He asked in a shaky tone. "It's me again."  
Suddenly, from out of the shadows, the man appeared.

_Francis_.

"Dear God, don't scare me like that," Arthur breathed. If it was possible, he seemed to be trembling even harder now. "I'm very sorry. Ah... You look cold, no? Here." The Frenchman strode up to the other Arthur, placing an old patched-up shawl around his shoulders.  
"Thank you," he managed to stutter out. "What are you doing out here so late?" _And why do I keep running into you? This is about the third time within the last three hours._  
Francis paused, contemplating his reply momentarily. "I could ask you the same question, monsieur."

"Well, I was just visiting my dying boy... Friend. My friend; and I haven't had a good night's sleep in about three months. I collapsed from exhaustion on that bench over there," he said matter-of-factly. Francis gave him a somewhat concerned look, cocking his head to the right. "I'm very sorry about that. Would you like me to walk you home?"

Arthur raised an eyebrow. Was he really going to let some strange man he barely knew walk him to his house, then risk the possibility of him copying his address for later use?

Yes. What did he have to lose?


End file.
